The Last Witness
690 Words
THE MAGIC PEN II: THE FINAL REWRITE
Chapter 3
Noah couldn't take his eyes off the photograph.
Just seconds ago, Ethan Graves had been standing beside Lena Brooks.
Now Ethan was gone.
Only Lena remained, standing alone outside the bookstore, her face filled with sadness.
Noah turned the photograph over again.
The words on the back had changed.
Instead of "Ethan Graves and Lena Brooks," it now read:
"She is the last one who remembers."
A cold shiver ran down his spine.
The next morning, Noah skipped school.
He couldn't stop thinking about the name.
Lena Brooks.
He searched for it online.
Nothing.
No social media.
No interviews.
No public records.
It was as if she had erased herself from the world.
Just as he was about to give up, one article caught his attention.
" _Local Librarian Honored for Restoring Historic Archives_ ."
The article was ten years old.
There was a faded photograph.
The woman in the picture was the same person from the old photograph.
Lena.
The article mentioned that she worked at St. Gabriel's Public Library.
Noah grabbed his jacket and left immediately.
The library was almost empty.
The old building smelled of dust and forgotten books.
Behind the front desk sat a woman arranging a pile of worn-out novels.
She looked older than the woman in the photograph, but Noah recognized her instantly.
"Lena Brooks?"
The woman slowly looked up.
The moment their eyes met, the color drained from her face.
She whispered only one word.
"No..."
Noah frowned.
"You know me?"
Lena stood so suddenly that the chair behind her fell to the floor.
"How old are you?"
"Seventeen."
She closed her eyes.
"It's happening earlier this time."
"What do you mean?"
Instead of answering, she walked around the desk and grabbed Noah's wrist.
Her eyes widened.
Black ink.
The same black stains from his dreams still marked his hands.
She let go immediately.
"The Pen has found you."
Noah's heart skipped a beat.
"You know about the Pen?"
"I know far more than I wish I did."
She looked around the empty library before lowering her voice.
"You shouldn't have come here."
"Why?"
"Because once the Pen chooses someone..."
"...it never stops hunting them."
Before Noah could ask another question, every light inside the library went out.
The building fell silent.
A heavy silence.
Then...
A book dropped from one of the shelves.
Another followed.
Then another.
Hundreds of books began falling one after another.
No one touched them.
The pages turned by themselves.
Words crawled across the paper like insects.
Lena's breathing quickened.
"They found us."
"Who?"
She didn't answer.
Instead, she pulled Noah behind one of the tall bookshelves.
"Don't make a sound."
Footsteps echoed through the library.
Slow.
Measured.
Someone was walking between the shelves.
Noah peeked through a gap.
A tall man in a long black coat walked past.
His face was hidden beneath a wide-brimmed hat.
But what terrified Noah most...
...was the smile.
It stretched impossibly wide beneath the shadow of the hat.
The Smiling Man.
He stopped.
Slowly turned his head.
Although Noah couldn't see his eyes...
He knew the creature was looking directly at him.
The Smiling Man laughed softly.
"You can't hide forever."
His voice echoed unnaturally, as though spoken by dozens of people at once.
Then he raised one pale hand.
Every book in the library slammed shut at the same time.
The sound thundered through the building.
Lena pulled Noah toward a narrow staircase at the back of the library.
"Hurry!"
They rushed downstairs into a forgotten basement.
At the end of the corridor stood an ancient iron door covered in strange symbols.
Lena pressed her hand against it.
The symbols began to glow.
The door slowly creaked open.
Beyond it lay a staircase descending into complete darkness.
Noah looked at Lena.
"What is this place?"
She swallowed hard.
"The place Ethan died trying to protect."
She looked into the darkness.
"And the place where your real story begins."
As they stepped inside, the iron door slammed shut behind them.
Somewhere above...
The Smiling Man smiled even wider.
End of Chapter 3
- Writer
